Black Roses, Blue Eyes
by Icya
Summary: What would happen when someone close to you is insane enough to kill. What would happen if you have to hunt that person down. That was a decision Ran did not wanted to face, but things never turn out the way you want them to, do they? *Please R&R*
1. The Fall

Before anything, I do not own any of the Weiß boys, they belong to their creator, even though if he wishes, I would gladly take them off his hands. ::Grins:: Though I know that's not happening. ::Sighs:: Too bad, I'm just borrowing them for the fic right now, and well, Aya/Ran-kun's not very happy about it. ::Smiles:: But, he'll just have to live with it. Oh yeah, beta-reader needed VERY badly. HELP ME!!!!!!  
  
Icya  
  
  
  
Prologue: The Fall  
  
The autumn sun peeked through a line of thick clouds, spotted the field with her light and left shades of gold and black onto the earth. Leaves on trees near by were changed from green to brown, red, yellow, matching the grass on the field which they stood, dying in the arms of the coldness brought by a soon to come winter.  
  
Tsukiyono Omi pulled his jacket closer to his form as he stood outside of the cabin door, tried to take the coldness away and kept his what was left warmth, though the fine fingers of lady wind found a way through the tiny cracks of the jacket and kissed his skin with her ice lips. He shivered a bit and took a step towards the lines of stairs before him, facing the small open meadow.  
  
It was a nice place in the hills, surrounded by the image of nature and sound of the things within it. Light tan colored wooden cabin with the top gray, the color of the clouds before a summer storm, where they were the thickest to an almost black, though clearly defined as gray. Old-fashioned windows spread the lower and upper levels of the house, gave in to the dim light brought by the sun. Of course, that was where the boys decided to spend their vacation away from the flower shop, where they spend their Thanksgiving time , and from the nagging from Ran, Aya-chan dragged along too.  
  
The blond boy wrapped his hands about his arms and walked down the steps in almost slow motion, the woods creaked from under his feet as the sound echoed through the forest and send a wave of birds flying away, left the branches near shaking in the wind. He tried to ignore the cold and took a deep breath, feeling the fresh air circling his body and cooling his temperature.   
  
That was definably not a good idea.  
  
Feeling ice down his back, Omi hiked into the forest with familiarity as he followed the dirt-paved path that led into a heavy ambush of green. It was decided that he, the youngest member of the group, besides Aya-chan, had to walk down that long narrow path to the mail box half a mile away to pick up their newspaper for the day. He was cheated in some ways, he just knew, for picking up the morning paper everyday for a week through the cold autumn air, though arguing with Ran-kun or even Yoji-kun would not work, since Ran-kun would just plainly ignore him, and Yoji would come up with some new idea to torture him, and it would not be pretty. So he stuck with his morning hike through the woods.  
  
The road felt soft against the bottom of his sneakers as they sunk in about a quarter of an inch into the dirt, leaving a trail of foot prints behind him, almost matching the foot prints from yesterday when he took the same path to the edgy of silence and beginning point of civilization. Same path he walked on for three days, and same path he will walk for three more till Sunday, when they would leave for the city once more.  
  
He liked it around here. Omi slid his hands from his arms to his pockets, where he tucked them in under the thick piece of cloth and away from the cold. The knuckles would be white about now, they always turn that color after a few minutes in the cold. The thought of leaving his gloves on the counter crossed his mind as he muttered a curse and continued, looking about the place to keep from his mind trailing back to the freezing air.  
  
It was pretty here as the forest itself prepared for the harsh winter to come, where the snow would cover all and turn the world into a sheet of white. Autumn's his favorite season, he decided that after he saw the change of the forest two days ago, the weather's not too hot like summer, nor too cold like winter, or even filed with endless rain like spring. But somehow, it always seemed colder in the woods, nearly winter like to a point.  
  
Suddenly, the silence shocked him. Why weren't the birds singing? Where were the whispers of the wind? Why was there no sound?  
  
Hearing himself think, Omi took a deep breath. He was creeping himself out, just enough to send cold sweat down his back, which was causing more chilliness than he wanted. Deciding to warm himself up, he took out his hands from the pockets and turned the slow hike into a jog. That should warm up his body a bit.  
  
A car honked somewhere in front of him as the rubber rammed into the cement road and loud noises filled the silent air. He was almost to the mailbox. The sound cheered up his mood a bit as he speeded up his jog to a run and stopped himself just before the black mailbox. The running did heat up his body, for now the heat was burning through his lungs and filling his muscles.  
  
Opening the mailbox with one hand, he took out the newspaper and the mail along with it.   
  
"Bills, bills, junk, bills." Omi ran through the pile of paper in his hands. "Love letter for Yoji, bills, junk, oooo, computer advertisement." He tugged that under one arm and continued the search between the stacks of paper. " Junk, junk, what's this?" The last thing in his pile was a card.   
  
The card was about the size of his hand, plain old rose colored paper with four white flowers decorating the four edges and the words "Happy Thanksgiving" printed onto the middle in a fine cursive.   
  
Omi tugged the rest of his papers under his other arm and opened the card, since it didn't address to whom it was for, he wasn't doing anything wrong by opening it. A fine black print filled the rose colored sheet in neat letters.  
  
"Black feathers with angel wing  
Glowing light of gold.  
Bloody hands with soul of white  
Tied in crimson bow.  
  
Eyes of ice with scarlet tear  
Weep for days to come.  
Empty lies with untold truth  
Spun by close to none.  
  
Cry for tomorrow.  
Forget yesterday.  
Never remember.  
  
Just an illusion of black and white."  
  
Omi blinked a bit at the card in his hands, who ever send this thing must be weird to come up with a poem like that for Thanksgiving. Hey, you never know, maybe Yoji-kun will think of it as funny. With a slight shrug, the blond boy started to walk back to the cabin. All four of the others should be up by now; he should show them this, just in case it really had to do with the mission. Maybe it's from Manx, or even Schwarz.  
  
The forest was silent, almost silent with the exception of the footsteps of sneakers against the soft dirt-paved path, leading into a shade of black and green. 


	2. Roses are Red

Here's chapter one, it's kind of bad since my beta-reader have not return to me what she finished, but I'm not one with much patience, so I'm posting it. ::Shrugs:: Well, as usual and stated before, I don't own the Weiß boys. Sad, ain't it?  
  
Chapter one: Roses Are Red  
  
Yoji pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and let the smoke escape through his nostrils, leaned back first to a wall while he sat on his bed and looked out of the half open window beside him. It's been three days since they got here, and now, Thanksgiving Day finally came, which was the reason why all of them were here, though there was no sound in the cabin through the seven o'clock sun.   
  
Omi should be up by now, and he would be outside getting the paper as usual. Yoji guessed and took another breath of the cigarette, then twisted what was left part of it on the window rail to end the smoke and dropped it there without much care. A cigarette in the morning always helped him clear his head, even though he knew they were bad for his health, Omi and Ken had told him plenty of time about how it could kill his lungs and cause cancer, but it was a hard habit to break, so he never bothered to try.  
  
Turned his body towards the pillow, he let himself fall back into the warm bed face first, then turned to face the ceiling The pillow was soft, he was glad he took Aya-chan's idea for adding those feathers in, she was always good with those things.  
  
Aya, the flower still blooming under that April sun, was growing more beautiful everyday. She carried a sent of mystery with her, he guessed somehow learned from her brother, or maybe it ran in the family or something like that, a calmness through that warm smile she held on her face everyday. A 'good morning' in the mist of dawn, a new flower decoration by the afternoon, and a well fixed dinner by night, she was the dear little sister of Ran, and everyone else in this house. An untold serenity followed her, just as it followed her brother.  
  
Ran did not change much through the outer appearance, though his mind did. Aya-chan's arrival had calmed his heart and forced some angers from that poor soul, perhaps, she placed back some missing puzzle of his life, and a missing piece he was looking for all those times he was with Weiß. A protective older brother and a perfectionist, yeah, that describes Ran perfectly.  
  
A light opening of the door disturbed his thoughts as Yoji turned his head towards his door. Ran rested in the room across from his, and by the sound of it, the redhead had finally decided to wake up to the early sun. A soft click indicated the closing of a door and light footsteps along with soft cracks of the floor followed the redhead down stairs, light footsteps from the thousands of time when silence was their only friend, though silence was not this time and only enhanced the sound of the stairs creaking.  
  
Yoji pushed himself up to a sitting position and threw his long slender legs over the side of his bed. His hair was in his way for they blocked his view to a limited three-inch column before his face. He brushed the thick black waves away from his face and desperately looked for a hair tie of some sort, a rubber band maybe.  
  
He spotted one on the desk across the room, right next to the closet door. Feeling a bit too lazy to move across the room, Yoji let out a soft sigh and stood up, balancing himself with one hand on the edge of his bed. He walked into the built in bathroom that he shared with Ken, who's asleep on the other side of the wall.   
  
Yoji brushed his teeth without much hurry and cleaned his face, though didn't bother to wipe off the water that dripped from his chin, eyelashes, and hair. He stepped out of his bathroom and opened the door leading to the hallway.  
  
The floor was cold against the bottom of his feet as he walked through the hall and down the steps; Yoji noted that he should wear socks when walking early in the morning, or maybe he should buy those fuzzy slippers he saw in a store a couple miles away. He chuckled slightly at the thought of orange slippers on his feet.  
  
A sound of toasts popping ran through the house and echoed with the walls.  
  
Ran was making breakfast.  
  
Yoji couldn't help but grin at that. Even though Ran doesn't admit it, he was a good cook, unlike Ken and himself, who thought of sunny side up eggs with broken yolk and egg shells was a nice job done, the redhead can actually make a fairly nice meal with excellent taste. He would make a great husband someday, though Yoji could not picture Ran as the type that would settle down anytime soon.  
  
Stepped through the door, Yoji walked into the kitchen and seated himself upon his usual seat, the one near the east window, leaning against the wall. He crossed his fingers then placed them on the table as Ran walked up with five dishes and placed them on the table, one before each chair. Toast with bacon and a piece of egg omelet, along with orange juice and a glass of cold milk. Yoji cracked a smile. Enough to feed everyone in the house and the birds outside. Maybe he'll take the time off and feed them, some sparrows lived right by his window after all.  
  
Picked up the folk left by Ran, Yoji took a bite of his omelet and decided that Ran should have been a chef rather than an assassin, he fit both roles, but one does taste better than the other.   
  
The redhead seated himself to Yoji's left and started eating his food as the door opened and brought with it a heavy wind of cold air. Omi stepped in. Took another bite of his bacon, Yoji greeted the young boy with a smile. "Good morning."  
  
"You guys are eating without me again?" Omi complained as he sits down in the middle of the three empty seats. "And after I went out in the cold to get the mail too." A heavy pile of paper was dropped onto the table; Ran eyed it, and then continued with his food. The youngest boy picked up the folk beside his plate and took a piece of the egg, then sighed in relief from the cold. Reached into his pocket, Omi pulled out a letter and placed it on the table, then slid it towards Yoji, who stopped the moving letter with two fingers and picked it up.  
  
"What's this?" Yoji arched one eyebrow as he held the envelope before his eyes to examine it.  
  
"A love letter." Omi answered between bites. "Another one to add to your collection."  
  
Brushed back his black hair with one hand, Yoji opened it. "Wonderful." A scent greeted him with a warm welcome. Scarlet, if he remembered correctly as he made a mental note to himself at the girl's good choice in perfume. Scanned the three page long letter, Yoji placed it back into the envelope and placed it in his left pocket. It was your usual, the screams of I love you, admiration, and the whole future crap, sometime it made him wonder what would happen if one of those girls found out that he's an actual killer, would those black words on paper turn meaningless?  
  
He cleaned his plate and pulled the rest of the papers closer to him as he dug through the mail, not really looking for anything in particular, Omi's the one that took care of the bills and he really didn't cared much about advertisements. After a second or two of shuffling through the stack, three knocks interrupted the men's breakfast. Yoji looked up from the envelopes and met his eyes with Omi, who was looking at him, and then he found the younger boy looked towards Ran, who seemed undisturbed by the sound of the knocks and was continuing with his food. With a sigh, Omi pushed himself away from the table and walked out of the kitchen.  
  
Yoji grinned; he knew the younger boy would of gotten the door. He leaned back against the back of his chair as he heard Omi yelling, "I'm coming" in the living room. The door opened and the boy greeted the newly arrived stranger, then he started to chatter as he stepped back into the kitchen with someone standing beside him.  
  
Yoji's eyes lit up.  
  
Stood beside the now seemed shorter boy was the lady in red, Manx. He didn't know she owned a red coat, but it went damn well with her hair and outfit. With a sly smile on his face, Yoji stood up and walked towards the woman. "Good morning Manx, are you finally here to accept my offer?" He spoke with a hint of glitter in his eyes.  
  
Ran took another bite of his food, then pushed his plate away from him. "What is it Manx?" He questioned without much emotion as he picked up the remaining plates and threw them into the sink.  
  
"W. . . wait! Ran-kun, I wasn't done!" Omi reached out with one hand, but he was too late, his food was soaked with water and soap. A look of disappointment washed over the young boy's face.  
  
"I have some bad news Weiß," Manx took a step forwards and dropped her coat in an empty seat. Yoji felt his heart skip a beat, though didn't show it. Manx usually don't call them by Weiß unless something's up, and in need of the assassins to hunt the night once more. "Your vacation's going to be cut short." She turned towards everyone.  
  
Noticed some movements in the corner of his eyes, Yoji shifted his head and saw Aya-chan walking into the room. She had obviously over heard what Manx had said for the expression on her face was that of disappointment. She stayed quiet and leaned against the far wall, paying attention the words coming out of the red haired woman's mouth. "A murderer is on the loose near here." She pulled out a clipboard from under her coat and handed it to Ran, who was standing the closest to her of the three men. "We don't know who that person is, and there seemed to have no pattern about the killing. Twenty-three victims had been found in the last three days, probably bodies around. The police couldn't find out a thing, there were no fingerprints, no weapon, and no witnesses, not even a single hair was found on the victims. You are our last resort." She turned to face everyone. "The white hunter of the night, hunt down the tomorrows of those in the darkness."  
  
A look of seriousness was on Omi's face as he handed the clipboard to Yoji, who picked it up with one hand and flipped through the file on the victims with his other hand. Pictures of men and women flew by along with their statuses, though none of them matched. So far, there were two women and one man with a bit of money in their pickets, a on the street beggar, three businessmen and two businesswomen, five head of some company somewhere, three police officers, four school children, two babies, a stripper, and the secretary of the mayor. Yoji arched an eyebrow. The killer's been quiet busy.  
  
"So we have nothing?" Yoji asked as he looked up from the larger stack of paper.  
  
Manx shook her head.  
  
"So we're on our own?" Omi followed with a question of his own.  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"You're hiding something." Ran's eyes were sharp as he stared down the woman, though she just flashed him a smile.   
  
"There are things that's best left unknown." Manx answered as she picked up her coat and started to walk towards the door. She turned back with a look of grief in her eyes. "You guys have two week to hunt down the killer, before any more bodies are found."  
  
The three men nodded and with the closing of the door, the red haired woman disappeared from sight. Silence ran through the room as the three men looked at one another, the finally all placed their eyes on Aya-chan, who met their gaze with one of her own.  
  
"I'm sorry." Ran finally whispered after what seemed like forever. "I guess we might not be back for dinner."  
  
"I understand." Aya answered softly as she walked to her seat and sat down. "That's okay, I'll just make food, just in case you all got hungry and decided to come back." She smiled towards the boys, then started her meal.  
  
Yoji decided that he admired the girl's attitude, it was clear that she was disappointed, but she tried her hardest not to let it show.   
  
Ken walked into the kitchen with a toothbrush in his mouth and he stretched and looked about with confusion in his eyes. The boy's hair was a nest, strands flew toward every direction and he was dressed in an azure colored pajamas; how unfitting. He turned from face to face and noticed the grim mood of the kitchen, the swallowed hard and smiled. "What did I miss?"  
  
Ran shot the brown haired man an ice glare while Omi sighed and walked up, decided to fill the perplexed man in with what had happened.   
  
Yoji just laughed as he dug through more of the mail in his hand. He had forgotten about them. Dropped the bills on the kitchen table, he picked up a card from the stack of paper and found a grin on his face as he opened it.   
  
The poem was weird, which was all he could say, but other than that it was a nice greeting. Though it did bother him that there was no return address, nor did it say whom it was to. Maybe the mailman just screwed up like what he does at times. Mistakes do happen, even to a professional. Feeling the sudden urge to smoke, the tallest in the room stepped out of the kitchen and walked up to his room where the rest of the cigarettes lied.  
  
Chose one out of the pack of cigarettes, he pulled out the lighter in his right pants pocket. The flame danced in his hand as he lit the cigarette, Yoji took a breath and let the smoke escape. Dropped the rest of the mail upon his bed, he picked out his assassin outfit from his closet with one hand. Again, he would wear the mask of death and bring pain upon the world.  
  
Yoji laid the suit next to the mail on his bed; somehow he lost the feeling of boredom and walked out of his room, closing the door behind him.   
  
The midnight blue suit shined in the early morning sun, partially covered the stack of paper with the card on top.   
  
"Okay everybody, let's get out of here by seven!" Yoji's voice echoed through the halls as a breeze picked up from the cold air outside. The card shifted and fell from the wind, landed on the edge of Yoji's bed.  
  
The pale colored card laid face down on the wooden floor with the picture of a blood-covered rose on its lower right edge.  
  
  
*replies and reviews requested, please????!!!* 


	3. Thanksgiving Night

Does Manx actually have a younger sister? ::Shrugs:: On well, she does now. ::Smiles:: Enjoy, I promise I'll fix the mistakes soon! And please R&R!  
  
Chapter two: Thanksgiving Night  
  
Aya-chan looked back towards the table full of food in the middle of the room with satisfaction in her eyes. It took her most of the afternoon and half the night to make those things, and finally, she was done.   
  
Plates of steaming food rested upon the white draped tablecloth, in the middle was, of course, the turkey. A side dish of mashed potatoes, some mac and cheese, and your everyday Thanksgiving dinner. There was the hot chocolate she just warmed up, but that was for dessert, who could guess Ran had a sweet tooth?  
  
Giggled a bit about the picture of Ran and a dish of candies, Aya turned towards the clock hang over her head at the far wall and saw it was about eight thirty. It was already dark outside; in fact, the sun decided to set at about five at night and brought on the stars to this moonless night. And of course, just as she guessed, the boys weren't back yet.   
  
With a soft sigh, she tugged the string and pulled off of her light blue colored apron, then placed it on the hook near the clock. By the time the boys would be back, the food would be cold; she would need this later for warming up dinner, or breakfast rather. She shrugged slightly at that thought, but decided it was the right thing to do for Thanksgiving, and besides, if they did show up early, Yoji would be begging for food for the rest of the night with that puppy dog face he does so well and Aya can't really help but fall to his beg.  
  
The girl found a smile upon her face. Out of the four men, Ran was her only blood related brother, but the other three still treated her like their own baby sis.   
  
Ran would give anyone a black eye and a couple of broken ribs for picking on her, since her brother had a bit trouble with his temper. Perhaps it was because the lost of their parents, Ran was a bit overly protective, not to mention his explosive personality. Aya worried about how Ran was ever going to find a girlfriend that he could settle down with, after all, not everyone can put of with the redhead's cold shoulder, silent glare, and the sudden anger at time when someone he cared about was involved. Well, maybe the last part could warm up someone's heart.  
  
Yoji. Aya-chan giggled. What could she say about Yoji? That man would most likely break the world record for the most girls dated someday, but still, he would protect her if she were in need. Unlike her brother, the elder man would actually wait until dark and meet up with her 'attacker' in a dark alley somewhere, then would appear out of nowhere with that sly smile of his and scare the crap out of that someone, after that, he would do anything as give a warning to break legs depend on how heavily the punishment should be taken. Yoji won't admit this, but he was very reasonable for things, contrasting from the sleepy playboy look he tried to give everyone.  
  
Then there's Ken, who's just so kind to her as if he was her guardian angel, watched over her with his protective wings and kept her away from harm, not to kick harm's ass. The brown haired man's too gentle to try to break someone for something like teasing her with words, but of course he made marks before about how he didn't like it and threw a guy out of the store. Aya giggled as she saw the image of the man landing on his butt outside of Kitty in the House, he looked so surprised as Ken nearly picked him up by the collar and tossed him to the streets.  
  
And last, there's Omi-kun, he was merely a boy just a year and half older than her, but was the most responsible of the four Weiß members. After all, he was the one that took care of the bills, the plan, the books, even to the advertisement for the flower shop, surprising for someone with his youth to be loaded with the hard work out of the four. And unlike most boys his age, he didn't complain much about his job as the planner of the group; then again, Yoji-kun complained enough for all four of them.  
  
But it was just weird, weird for someone so seemed so fragile like Ken and Omi to be 'hunters', even if she knew that they were strong emotionally, except that at times, she could almost see pure sorrow in their eyes, the sorrow that matched Yoji's when he was thinking about his lover. Sadness was the only thing that separated them from her brother, for Ran seemed content, not with the killing, but with his life in general.  
  
Wrapped plastic sheets over the food, Aya decided to stop thinking and walk out of the kitchen after she turned off the lights. Darkness took over the house and swept away the luminosity. Never once did the thought of complete darkness crossed over her mind, but now, it shocked her greatly as the whole place darkened and the objects about her disappeared in less than a second. A wave of fear washed over the seventeen-year-old girl as she desperately looked for the switch once more. The thought of being totally alone within a huge house in the middle of the woods away from civilization didn't help much with calming her fear.  
  
She bit her lower lip as her hand slid along the wall and finally came to the light switch, Aya turned it on and felt relief touched her heart as the rays appeared once more and took away the gloom. Silence passed by her like a summer breeze. After what seemed like forever, Aya noticed she was pressed against the wall, her body almost glued to the surface of white. Felt a bit silly, she walked away from the wall with forced calmness on her face and thanked god that her brother wasn't there to see it, nor was any of the other three.  
  
She walked into the living room, which was at the time a mist of shadows, and turned on the light near the television, then the lamp on the table near by. Before she knew it, she was running about the house turning on everything she could beside the lights in the boys' bedrooms.  
  
Aya opened her own bedroom door next to that of Ran's and picked up the book she was reading off of the dressing table as she turned on the lamp beside it, a soft glow filled her room and gave her a sense of calm. She closed the door with one hand and the book in the other. Perhaps the fear was still there as she paced down the stairs of the now fully lit house, Aya stride into the living room once more.  
  
The living room was fairly large by most standards, about twenty feet by twenty-five with a huge rug on the middle of the floor. To the left, the west of the room was a fireplace with now the warm flames that flickered and licked the light red colored bricks. To the northwest corner was the overly large wide screen TV and faced that in the middle of the room was a full set of black leather sofa. The east wall was covered with a roll of bookshelves filled with volumes of tales; she only got the chance to read about four of them since she got there.  
  
It was eerily quiet within the cabin, the silence around her scared her somehow as Aya-chan found the remote for the television near the VCR. She turned on the TV to create some noise within the room and immediately felt better after the sound spread the room. It was some type of a soap opera for the woman was weeping and the man was saying something about how he was going to leave her for her sister. Almost rolled her eyes at the TV, Aya seated herself entirely onto the sofa before the television, she opened her booked to the marked page and placed it upon her lap.  
  
It was a nice little story about a man and his journey through life, how he faced the hardships about him. Not a bad book if Aya was to be the judge, but may not seem interesting to some others.  
  
Perhaps it was because of the nice heated room, or perhaps it was the lighting, or maybe the tiredness from the cooking finally reached her, Aya-chan couldn't keep her eyes open after reading three pages. The book slowly moved away from her eyes and she feel asleep upon the soft leather sofa under the brightly lit lights.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A soft sound woke Aya from her little nap as she stirred from her sleep. She opened her eyes and pulled up her hand to look at the watch that wrapped about her left wrist. It was about eleven at night, and so far, not a hint of the boys. The girl yawned and moved herself into a sitting position, it must had been her imagination about the weird clicking noise she heard a short while ago, since it was gone now and the sound of the TV was the only noise within the cabin.  
  
Felt bored out of her mind, Aya stood up as the book on her lap fell to the ground and made a soft thud upon the wooden floor. Annoyed with the book, she bended over to pick up the book, then suddenly, the clicking sound started again. Aya snapped to a stand, moved her eyes towards the noise and found it was the front door. Took a step closer, she noticed something very frightening.  
  
Someone was trying to pick the lock.  
  
Her throat dried instantly and her heart increased its pace as Aya took a step back from fear, wild images appeared within her minds. She was alone within a large cabin in the middle of the forest, as if that was not bad enough, someone was trying to get in, and perhaps, kill her, to make matters worse, she was imagining the worse possible ways to die.   
  
Prayed for her brother's help and wished for him to be there though knew he would nor, Aya looked about the room for some thing to defend herself, but the only things around were book, table, TV, things that were not hard enough or too heavy for her to lift. With a deep sigh, Aya tip toed into the kitchen and looked for an object solid enough to knock a fairly large man unconscious. She found her item when the largest frying pan came into her view.  
  
The young girl picked up the frying pan with both hand without much sound made, she crept back into the living room and stood next to the clicking door. With a soft gulp, she felt as if her heart was at the tip of her throat and beating like thunder, as if the one outside could hear it beat. The lock was turning slowly and finally, with a click that seemed so loud to the anticipated one, it was unlocked. The knob turned gradually, the gold paint glittered in the light, and the door opened. A figure stepped into the room as Aya-chan swung her arms down with the frying pan in her hands, expected it to contact with something hard.  
  
A hand grabbed both her wrists, rough hands that seemed to have done much hard work, as a pair of green eyes looked up to her with terror under the dark sunglasses. "Aya-chan!" The man called out with alarm in his voice.  
  
"Yo Yoji-kun." Aya looked down at the half bent Yoji with shock and her eyes widened "What are you doing here?!"  
  
"ME?" The taller man complained. "What about you, you were trying to kill me!" He let go of her wrists and dusted off the dart upon his deep blue jacket. "You could poke someone's eye out with that thing, or smash their brains, someone like me!"   
  
"Why did you try to pick the lock?" Aya countered. "You scared me half to death! No sane person would pick a lock and not expect something like this to happen!"  
  
"I didn't have a choice!" Came the reply as Yoji walked into the living room.  
  
Omi walked into the place with a frown. "Yoji-kun forgot the keys, and well, Ran-kun told him he should find a way for all of us to get it." The youngest of the four men pointed to the red head.   
  
"Yep." Yoji crossed his arms. "You should yell at Ran, not me, since I just followed orders."  
  
"But you forgot the keys." Aya arched an eyebrow then turned to the others. "Welcome back." She beamed. "How did everything go?" The other two men walked into the room and Aya closed the door behind them.   
  
The answer was clear.  
  
They looked tired from their search, Yoji's usually fake sleepy look was actually real, Omi look as if he was about to collapse onto the floor, Ken seemed to be already asleep, and weariness filled Ran's eyes.  
  
"It went fine Aya." The redhead answered with a soft whisper as he seated himself upon the sofa, between Omi and Ken while Yoji occupied the chair. "None of us are hurt if that's what you're asking." He turned his head towards Ken, who was sleeping like a new born.  
  
Aya brought a sincere smile on her face. "You guys look tired and hungry, I'll just warm up the food."  
  
"And if you could Aya-chan, can you warm up a bath for me?" Fatigue filled Yoji's voice and the girl nodded towards him before she walked into the kitchen. She was glad the ones that appeared were Weiß and not some stranger.  
  
Picked up two plates from the table, she popped the vegetable into the microwave and dumped the soup into a large pan. The sound of a phone distracted her from her work as Ran picked it up and started to speak softly; Aya turned on the heat for the soup and left the kitchen to check on the men, it was obvious that her brother didn't want her to know something and she's not the type that would just butt out of his business, after all, someone's gotta take care of the boys.  
  
With a soft grin, she leaned against hallway between the living room and kitchen as she paid close attention to the conversation. Her back pressed against the wall, she moved her head to peek into the room. By the sound of the voice from the cell, it was Manx who called them, and she, unlike normal, sounded very upset.  
  
The boys surrounded the phone, apparently someone had woke Ken and he also was in the small huddle of men. Ran was the one that spoke, his deep rich voice cut through the air. "No lead for anything Manx, we had a close encounter with a shadow, but that was all. The chase ended up with no result."  
  
"That man can run." Ken followed up. "He was faster than anything I saw and moved like a bird of prey. It was almost like he's inhuman."  
  
The other side of the phone was silent as Ken continued with the short story about how they met up with a dark shadow near the edge of town about two hours ago.  
  
Omi coughed slightly. "We're sorry Manx, but we'll get him soon enough. Don't worry."  
  
A light sigh was all Aya heard, then Manx spoke to the men. "Yes, please do catch that murder Weiß, no matter how inhuman he seems, because we can't hide the unexplained deaths to the public." She seemed to be chocking from tears. "We found six more bodies today."  
  
Yoji winced.  
  
It was clear Manx was crying over the phone. "And one of the seven year old girls was my sister." 


	4. In the eyes of death

Sorry it took so long, well, I have an excuse, I was sick. Hey, I'm still sick. Oh well, too bad, enjoy.  
  
Icya  
  
  
Chapter Three: In The Eyes Of Death  
  
The rain poured with fiery as the water drop bounced off the opened umbrellas and landed upon the already wet ground, loosening the soil and formed little puddles of mud, which welcomed the raindrops with a song of their own. Some people stood without any shelter from the storm while others tried to hide beneath what ever they brought, dodging the tear of mother nature as she wept for the innocence lost. The faces were that of a grim feel as black clothing wrapped their by now wet bodies, shaped some while hide others and brought more coolness than wanted for everyone.  
  
Aya shivered slightly as she tugged her jacket closer with one hand and ignored the raindrops from the tips of her umbrella that attached themselves onto her hair. Ran bought the black jacket for her about half a year ago for a birthday present, and finally, the weather was just about right to wear something like that.   
  
She tapped her foot faintly to the ground and saw her black rain boots sunk into the miniature mud piles. Pulled her foot out of the dirt, Aya tried to wash it off by extending her foot to be cleansed by the rain. It would have been better if Manx planned this on some other day, but Aya guessed the red haired woman didn't really cared much about weather when she prepared for the funeral of her younger sister.  
  
Felt a pair of eyes upon her that watched her like a hawk, the young girl looked up and saw her brother studying her with those eyes that always veiled a mention of warmth as he looked at her. "Are you okay?" He questioned with concern in his voice. Not many had heard him speak like so, only the ones he cared about. "You're not catching a cold, are you?" The redhead knotted his eyebrows as he bent down to her eyelevel.  
  
Aya-chan displayed a smile for her brother. "I'm fine Oni-san, I'm not going to die anytime soon if that's what you're asking." She joked, though by the look of her brother, he didn't think it was funny, nor did he believed what she said. Ran looked away from her with suspicion, though made no hint of correcting her.  
  
She coughed slightly to shrug off the feeling of unease, then turned her attention back to the priest who held a thick version of the bible in his hands as he spoke the words of goodbye.   
  
"We are gathered here for the…" The words seemed to slip in one ear and out the other as Aya felt the coldness about her and leaned on her brother for comfort. She really didn't want to be there, funerals always filed her with discomfort, and this one was not different from any others. Just the thought of being near a body whose soul was take away by a brutal murderer made her noxious, even if the corpse in the coffin was that of Manx's sister.  
  
It didn't felt right here, something was always wrong with death.  
  
The young girl felt Ran's hand about her shoulder and tried her best to relax as the priest stopped talking and stepped aside. Others started to walk up and say their farewell under the watchful eyes of many. Manx was the first one to appear before the coffin.  
  
She stood there like a black rose, for once wearing other than red. A black dress with a long black coat that went down pass her knees and a raven hood covered her crimson colored hair. The dark circles beneath her eyes told all that the redhead was not getting much sleep, and the puffiness of the eyes themselves showed that all the time for sleep was substituted with tears. The woman must have really cared about her younger sister.  
  
Sobs concealed her voice as she spoke softly about loosing her sister and how the little girl named Ayami would be resting in heaven as an angel. How she was in a better place and was at the moment watching over everyone about with a smile. And of course, how the death of the seven year old was that of a tragedy and she would be missed terribly by everyone. Perhaps it was the tone of her voice and the apparent sorrow in her eyes that brought half of the people in tears, and Aya was among them.  
  
Hot tears rolled down Manx's cheeks as she walked away from the casket. Aya had never saw that woman cry, she had always brought a sense of calm and inner strength with her when she paced into the flower shop, or walked into the cabin, or even drive by in her red sports car, but now, she seemed weak even, a woman drowned in the past.  
  
Aya felt sorry for her as she wiped the tears away from her own face.  
  
People stepped up and spoke after Manx who now stood back at her original place beside her mother, a woman about sixty some in age and whom also in all black. More of those heartbreaking words were said and more tears were shed, and finally, it was the Weiß's turn.  
  
Aya turned toward the others and found them.  
  
Yoji had placed himself right next to Manx, and by the looked was whispering the words of comfort to her as he bent down to her height. He then took her into his arms and lends his shoulder for Manx to cry on, for once, she did not step away nor smack him in the face.  
  
Omi was about ten feet to the right of the coffin with a look of regret in his eyes, obviously not in the mood to talk; he had his arms crossed before him in a defensive position and his eyes seemed far away, as if he was remembering a terrible past. Then again, she didn't know much about his past, the young man never said much about it.  
  
Ken stood next to the siblings as he met Aya's eyes and shook his head. He was never good with words, especially those of goodbye.  
  
Ran sighed and looked down to his sister once more. "Come on Aya, we'll do it."  
  
Aya leaned against her brother at their approach towards the coffin, and then stood about two yards away. Ran cleared his throat and started a speech, moving by the fact that everyone was silent like the darkest night when death walked the roads to hell; Aya decided to study the girl instead of listen to her brother's speech, which would depress her more than she was.  
  
The girl named Ayami rested in the wooden tomb, her finger crossed before her stomach. A red dress wrapped her small frame, identical to her hair while paled her already pastel skin and made her dark lashes more conspicuous. Her tiny lips were painted red, matched her shoes as her limp form lounged on the redwood floor of that soon to be closed prison.  
  
She would have been a beauty if she had the chance of growing up.  
  
"Bless your soul." Aya whispered at the sight of the deceased girl, Ran looked down towards her with misery.  
  
With the sound of Aya's voice, the lifeless eyes of the seven-year-old girl snapped open, stared blankly into the gray sheet of rain.   
  
She wanted to say more, she wanted to pray for her, to wish for her happiness, but Aya found the words stuck in her throat and refused to escape. Those ice like eyes stared towards the so-called heaven, those windows masked with a sentiment so strong that it brought the dead moving once more. Concealed within that freezing stare were the feel of despair and utter hatred.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Someone was watching her, someone was chasing her, someone was aware of her every move. She wanted to scream, wanted to shake off that fear which covered her heart. She wanted that someone to disappear, to vanish into thin air and depart from this darkened place, to leave her alone and let her feel safety once more. But that didn't stop that touch of death, that touch of someone other than herself watched her like a tiger, preyed on her as an eagle to a rabbit.  
  
She ran.  
  
Her footsteps echoed in the dark place, bounced back like a child playing ball by the wall, soon, it was joined with another echo, one different from her own.  
  
She cursed slightly and begged Kami to help her, to free her from the shadow that chased her, as she felt hot tears rolled down her cheeks, blurred her vision.  
  
"Come back here my little wolf, come back here." A voice hissed out from a couple of inches behind her, the hot air stroked the back of her neck and brought more terror into her heart.  
  
"NO." She shrieked as she ran harder, tried to escape that voice which hunted her. "Leave me alone, please!"   
  
A miss step forced her to the ground, then the shadow was on top of her, breathing next to her as the heat brushed against her face. "My little wolf, come with me." It hissed as burning hot tongue touched her cheek.  
  
She opened her mouth and tried to scream, tried to call someone's attention, anyone's attention.  
  
No sound came out.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Aya snapped her eyes open at the echo of a scream, and then looked about desperately for the cause. Everything was the way she left it, nothing out of place or even moved an inch from their original spot. Her room was dark; the moonlight shone into the place with her soft smile and illuminated the objects with an almost unreal glow. There was just enough light for the half blurred sight of the spaces and emptiness.  
  
The scream continued until the girl matched the voice to her own. It almost shocked her that her voice was the thing that woke her from her sleep and she closed her mouth. The scream of horror stopped instantly. Annoyed with that, she wondered why her scream had not woke any of the four men, and how her brother wasn't in her room since the first thing he would do would be to break down her door with a kick, run inside holding that katana of his and the look of an assassin in his eyes.  
  
Picked up her watch from the bed with one hand, Aya rubbed her eyes as the time two thirty was displayed on the face of the watch.  
  
That WAS weird.   
  
What was even weirder was that she couldn't remember a thing that caused her to scream in the first place; it must have been some nightmare to wake her with her own scream of bloody murder greeting her like a cold slap of winter storm.  
  
Placed back her watch onto the nightstand by her bed, a sheet of paper caught her eyes and she picked it up with one hand. Turned on the lamp on the stand with her free hand, Aya placed the white sheet of paper before her face to read its contents. Neat black ink filled the page as she read it out loud. It was from Omi.  
  
"Aya-chan:  
  
I'm sorry to say this but we have to check out that killer tonight, we know it's late, but it would be for everyone's advantage if we catch this slayer as soon as we can. Just don't worry about us. We don't want any more deaths of innocent people, and Yoji-kun wanted me to add that Manx requested us to go and give the killer a very painful death. We're sorry to leave like this. Ran-kun wanted to write that you should get a good night of sleep and don't worry about us. Wait, I've already said that. Good night Aya-chan.  
  
Omi.  
  
P.S. Don't wait for us at breakfast."  
  
Aya sighed slightly as placed back the note with a smile. The two taller men must of 'requested' Omi to write a letter again. She grinned. Those two were always picking on the younger two, especially Yoji, who seemed to be very satisfied with his age and his height.  
  
Aya pulled the blanket up to her chin and reached for the lamp, she took one last look towards the note and realized there was something on the back for ink leaked through the thin white paper and caused some slight dots of black on the perfect sheet of snow. Turned to the back of the paper as she picked it up again.  
  
Her mouth went dry.  
  
The piece of white fell onto the ground like the feather of an angel as a scream echoed through the house.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Aya shivered in the corner of her room, her arms wrapped about her legs as cold sweat covered her body. She rocked herself slowly, her eyes almost blank as she gazed upon the paper on the wooden floor. The sheet of white was about three yards away, and even that, she could see the words clearly.  
  
On the back of Omi's note, written in raven ink was the thing she feared as it brought back the memory of a dream she did not wanted to remember.  
  
"Hello my little wolf, I'm watching you." 


	5. Disturbance

Ramblings: Anyways, sorry it took so long to post, my computer is evil....... Oh, and I'll have the next chapter up if enought people ask for it. ::Blinks:: Am I evil for stopping the story like this?  
  
Chapter four: Disturbance  
  
Ran walked into the living room and seated himself across from Omi, who seemed to be typing furiously to send a message to Manx about another failure at capturing the murderer. They had a short encounter with that man, and within seconds, he disappeared in the shadows, Weiß didn't even have a chance of following before the trail went cold.  
  
Sighed within, Ran glanced at the youngest boy. "Done?" He questioned, it was never necessary to speak more than needed, too much words can only get you into trouble, and Yoji's a perfect example.  
  
"Almost." Came the reply as the sand colored boy typed for about another five seconds. "Done."  
  
"Good." The redhead blinked and turned back to the other two. "Now we wait for Manx."  
  
The silence surrounded the room. Silence, he always liked that, perhaps not complete stillness, but that rhythm of those little things about that comes with the silence; like rain. He loved the rain. Often he sat by the window watching the rainfall with a warm cup of coffee in his hands, the immobility was always welcomed with affectionate greetings.  
  
"How is she?" The question came so suddenly it almost surprised him as the redhead look up to the concerned face of Ken. He constantly felt an attachment to Ken, then again, to all of three others, they were his comrades, the ones which he shared his life with besides Aya-chan, and maybe, his friends even. They were as much as big brothers to Aya as he was, and they were as much as friends to him as, well, nothing.  
  
"She's fine." Ran replied, brushing his hair back with one hand. "She calmed down a short while after you guys left." As if the question started a chain reaction in his head, his mind drifted back to about an hour ago.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was about four in the morning as the four assassins stepped into the moon lit house filled with nothing but a sense of calmness, it was dark inside for no lights were on, only the light from the stars guided the foursome around the large decoration placed by Aya-chan and safely into the living room.  
  
Ran fingered the hilt of his katana and regret in not being able to use it, even if he didn't want to show emotions, they were just things that would get in the way someday, he felt an unknown anger towards that murderer, maybe it was because of Manx and her tear filled eyes as the little girl was put to rest, maybe. He paced the stairs, noting Omi asleep on the sofa and Yoji sniffing out some food before the view was cut off by the walls.  
  
Aya-chan would be asleep by now, and he had made 'visiting his sister every night when he came home' a habit, none of the three make fun of him for it, it was probably because they cared too, but felt unsure about taking the role of big brother to Aya. Ran stopped before Aya-chan's door, the sign she hung before it always brought a smile to his face. The sun with the smiling face and the rainbow beside it with the name Aya upon the seven colored stripes, it was something he gave her around five years ago, it amazed him that she still kept it like a treasure, even dusting it on Sunday mornings.  
  
With one hand on the knob, Ran opened the door and found himself to be in shock.  
  
The room was a mess. Lamps crashed, torn bed sheets covered the floor as the paint job on the walls darted the ground like corn flakes, covering shredded paper and broken stuff animals. Aya's desk was covered with overturned books, CDs, the cordless phone was in the far left corner, the 'hang up' tone seemed to be the only sound in the room. And in the far corner was a pair of eyes, blue eyes filled with fear as they stared back at him.  
  
A scream ran through the house.  
  
"Aya!" Ran rushed towards him sister as she backed away from him and seemed to be trying to climb up the walls to get away from someone, anyone.   
  
"Get away from me!" She shrieked, grabbing the nearest thing and held it like a weapon. Then at the closing of her brother, swung it towards him with so much force Ran was almost stunned.  
  
He pushed away the broken lamp with one hand and took hold of Aya's neck with the other, in an attempt to calm her down, he drew her towards him and held her in his arms, still holding both her wrists in one hand. "Aya."  
  
She struggled, trying her best to escape his grasp, pushing and pulling at the attempt to get free. "Stop it, get away, go away! Let me go!"  
  
"Aya! It's me." Ran whispered, keeping the alarm out of his voice and fill it with as much warmth and love as possible. "Aya, clam down, it's okay, nothing's wrong."  
  
"Ran! What's going on?" Ken's voice entered the conversation as Ran turned and saw the other three standing in the doorway, Omi awake from his nap and Yoji with his half eaten cake in his hands.  
  
"I don't know." He answered, but his voice was drowned out by Aya's scream. She was frightened like a little kitten, and the crowd seemed to be causing her more distress rather than composing her. "Leave!" He yelled to the others. "She's to frightened to have everyone in here."  
  
A questionable look was given to him by Yoji, but the three men left the room with the door closing behind them.  
  
Blackness once again covered the room as Aya gave up her struggle and the broken lamp fell from her hands. The glass shattered as the lamp connected with the floor, broken pieces flew everywhere, and finally silence. "Aya, it's me." Ran murmured, letting go of her hands and patted her head like he would to a kitten. "It's Ran, your brother. Don't worry Aya, I'm here now, you're going to be fine." The same words repeated over and over again as Aya leaned forward and gave in to the warm embrace.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was hard tugging the frightened Aya into bed, it seemed as if she was afraid to sleep, but now, she rested in her room peacefully. "She's okay now." Ran answered, staring blankly into thin air.  
  
A "you got mail" message came onto the computer screen as the redhead directed his attention back to the computer. Omi took the mouse and clicked open the mail, then stared at it blankly.   
  
"What does it say?" Yoji questioned, taking a bite out of his breakfast, a large sandwich.   
  
The blond boy choked as he answered. "Manx said she found a pattern in case 395's attacking. And the next place he's going to strike would be a club called Blue Lily. Under eighteen not permitted"  
  
Yoji lost his breakfast to sudden laugher as he held his stomach with both hands. Ran raised an eyebrow at the taller man but decided not to ask, Yoji was not the type that would keep jokes, and he would tell them eventually.  
  
"What's so funny?" Ken blinked as he leaned in to read the mail, the tallest raven haired man placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you going to tell us?"  
  
A sly grin appeared on Yoji's face as he gave a glance towards Omi, who seemed to be in a half daze. "I don't think Omi should go, but it is a mission." The blond gave him a dirty look. "It's a striper's club."  
  
"WHAT?!" Ken's eyes widened as he coughed, taking a seat without knowing it as Omi's face turned a bright shade of red, then light purple. "You GOTTA be kidding me! Manx's asking us to go to a stripper's club?!"  
  
"Yep," Yoji answered as he pulled a hand under his chin. "I knew Manx had guts, just didn't know that she was to show it here."  
  
"We're going." Ran stood up as command filled his voice and he gave Omi and Ken a glare, then turned towards Yoji. "No trouble out of you." With that, he left the room. As normal, the four of them would leave around six, and by his calculations, that left about eleven long hours, and eight of that would go to sleep. He climbed up the stairs towards his room, his pace grave.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Ran studied the room as he leaned against the bar, holding the martini in his left hand. The place was dark, somewhat lit by the four large dim lights near the edge of the room, it appeared that the stage before him would be the one that the star stripper would walk upon and gather money soon enough, but that was not the main thought on his mind.  
  
Weirdly enough, Yoji bought outfits for the four of them, for the occasion he said, but to Ran, it seemed that the taller man just wanted to catch attention and make fun of the three others.  
  
Ran decided he can tolerate the clothing Yoji picked out for him, it was not that bad. A long black trench coat covered his body, hiding the raven colored shirt and pants, along with dark colored boots. The only problem it seemed would be that the shirt and pants were leather, not very favorable towards the moving department, or much towards not drawing female attention.  
  
Of course Yoji picked out fine outfits for himself, on his standards of course. A half opened shirt surrounded his upper body as his lower was hugged by tight cowboy jeans, and just to the effect, Yoji bought the hat and boots to go along with it. Ran signed as he caught the taller man in the far right corner, sitting on the sofa with three girls in his arms and one sleeping in his lap. Yoji's going to be busy for a while, and those ladies didn't seem to be the type that would just let a big fish go.  
  
Ken was another matter; the belts and bugles didn't seem to be his style. Seeing a nice man like Ken in all leather with a collar just seemed, wrong, especially since he looked as if he was to drop to his knees before one of the woman in the room and just repeat "Yes Mistress" over and over again like a dog. About a couple minutes into the club, the brown haired man had been standing before the restroom, the ladies restroom, and for what? Asking Omi to get out of it.  
  
Because of his young appearance, Yoji 'talked' Omi into dressing up like a woman, a very attractive woman, but the thought still scared Ran. The young boy was in all mid-night blue dress for god's sake, along with matching blue high heels, and the chocolate wig over his head only made him look more female than he really is, then again, Manx did do his make up, and that woman can whip up a Lady in Red in no time.  
  
By the looks of things, it appeared that the only one who was going to get anything done would be him. Ran signed again as he stood up from his seat and started searching.  
  
Nothing he saw was out of normal, half nude women walking around, followed by half drooling men, a typical stripper's club. Suddenly a redhead grabbed his arm and pressed herself upon him, she stared up to him with forest green eyes and a seductive smile. "Hello handsome, care to spend some time with me tonight?" She grinned. "For a price of course."  
  
Ran barely turned his head as he replied coolly. "I'm not interested, if you want someone, go to him." He pointed to Yoji, who waved back.  
  
The woman released his arm, apparently disappointed at the cold shoulder. She threw back her hair with one hand. "Well, I didn't know you swing that way, you could of put up a sign you know."  
  
"Sorry lady, I'm not homosexual if that's what you're asking. Just not interested." He shrugged and started to walk away, then was dragged back by the woman.   
  
She stuffed a paper in his coat pocket then gave him a wink. "If that's so, call me if you're lonely at night." With that, she walked away from him and towards Yoji.  
  
Ran shook his head and continued his search.   
  
After long hour of searching it was unfruitful as Ran once again returned to his original seat. He ordered another glass of martini then drank it with one gulp. Stubbornness was part of him, and he was not about to give up. The drink fueled his anger towards the alones at the searching as the red read stood up and paced towards Yoji to drag him into the job and away from the girls, his steps were suddenly interrupted by a loud scream from the back stage as deafening crashes echoed in the room. Without thinking, he jumped up the stage and ran towards the curtains. Throwing the bright red curtains aside, he ran in and was greeted by the splatters of blood.  
  
A dark shadow stood over the body in pools of red, a long knife in one hand while the other surround the throat of the dead woman. She was a blond with beautiful blue eyes, blue eyes that seemed blank as they rolled skywards, away from the crimson liquid flowing freely out of the large wound on her neck. More blood were spilled on her body as cuts filled them and her right leg was bending I a strange position that showed it was broken, several places if he guessed right. At the sight of Ran, the figure jumped back and ran towards the exit. Ran picked up his feet and began the chase.  
  
He was fast, that was the first thing that came to his mind as the redhead dashed out the club and into the night, the second thing was how petite the man was, he was about Omi's height, give or take a couple of inches. The killer must be really short, or a young teen. The third thing surprisingly was Yoji, who appeared out of nowhere and ran beside him. Then, all thoughts disappeared as the chase quickened and everyone picked up their pace. He was fast, too fast to be chased, Ran gritted his teeth and continued to follow the shadow figure as the stranger took a right turn into an alley.  
  
By the time the two Weiß members got there, the man was gone and the alley empty expect for the stray cat with fish bones in his mouth.  
  
"He's gone," Yoji caught his breath as he pulled a cigarette out of his pants pocket, lit it, and began to smoke.  
  
Ran threw him a disapproving look but didn't bother to stop him. "I know."  
  
"Now what?"  
  
"We go back." Ran turned and walked towards the nightclub with Yoji following his steps. The night air was hospitable towards his tired lungs as the red head slowed his pace to a stroll. It was a clam night, despite the murder, the dark lady seemed to be friendly towards everything and wanted to erase the bloody scene from everyone's mind.  
  
Yoji let out a smoke ring. "You know what? It's strange, but I want to forget what just happened."  
  
"I know." Were the only replies as Ran turned towards the club.  
  
Omi looked shocked as he stood next to Ken, hugging himself closely while both of them stood without motion beside the door. He was shivering, not a good sign, nor was Ken's expression of despair.  
  
"What's wrong?" Ran asked as he was in hearing range. Omi mumbled something and held himself tighter while Ken shook his head. The redhead gave both of them a look of confusion, then the former soccer player pointed towards the alley beside Blue Lily.  
  
Ran stopped before the alley, his mind spinning as the alcohol kicked in and his vision blurred.   
  
But his blurred vision could not take out one color, the color of blood.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Ran walked into the house with a cold water bottle pressed against his cheek. No wonder Omi was so frightened; the whole alley was covered with dead bodies, fifty, if not more.  
  
Yoji held the door as Ken led a still half absent minded Omi into the room. The four stepped into the kitchen for a late mid-night snack and was greeted by the "you got mail" message. It was from Manx.  
  
The youngest of the four shook clear his mind and gained his composure, with slow steps, he reached for his computer and opened the mail. It was a video mail as Manx's face appeared on the computer screen. Fragileness covered her tired face, somehow, she looked depressed, more depressed than she did at her sister's funeral.  
  
"Weiß, we found out the identity of the killer." She spoke slowly, her voice filled with weariness. Ran leaned against the wall, giving his full attention to the screen as a picture flashed on the screen. "Mission 395, Target, Fujimiya Aya."  
  
Every word sank in slowly, as if in a dream, Ran blinked. "What? Manx have to be wrong!"  
  
"I'm sorry Weiß, white hunters of the night, hunt down the tomorrows of those in the darkness." The mail was done and the screen flashed black as Manx's face disappeared. The room was silent as the foursome stared at one another, looking for an answer to that unknown question.  
  
A soft footstep was heard from the living room as the shaken foursome turned towards the noise.  
  
There she stood with her hair a mess from sleep, shaken, by everything, like the flower on its last minute of glory under the sun, was Aya-chan. Her eyes filled with tears, tears of surprise and hurt. Her voice trembled as she fought with the words and her tears. "Am I the killer you guys are looking for? Omi-kun, Ken-kun, Yoji-kun," she turned her gaze towards Ran and he felt helpless as a newborn child to the waves of a roaring ocean. "Oni-san, are you going to kill me?" 


End file.
